Monday, July 30, 2012

I Love "Monday Made-It" Day! ~ Lots to Share and a Freebie!

I am linking up with Tara at 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made-It.  I will be so sad when its finished:(
Monday Made-It: #1 ~ Chair Pouch
The trickiest thing each week is trying to narrow down what to make!  Everybody's "made-its" look so fabulous that I just want to make them all!  After reading Ladybugs Teacher Files idea for cheap chair pockets I knew that was an absolute must have!  Now I am in Canada and I have figured out that I pay about double those in the US do.  I think you guys are paying about 77 cents for the nail aprons at Home Depot ~ I paid $1.49.  Still within the budget since the alternates are much more costly.  I have read several posts about how some people are trying to cover the beautiful ugly orange logo.
The seam on my pouch is between the "guy" and the logo which means if I covered each logo separately it looked crooked!  I am way too OCD to let it look like that!  So I created a larger label that covers everything equally.  Now before I show you the picture I want to let you know that it looks big, however, it covers the entire logo and it balances the apron.  I used velcro dots to adhere it to the apron after laminating the label.  I do not use a number system in my class so I am going to make name labels and use velcro to attach them to the main label {in the white space}.  Each year I will only have to change the name labels.  Also, with the label being a little larger {and laminated} it makes the pouch a lot more sturdy.  I LOVE how they turned out!


FREEBIE TIME! {But please finish looking at my creations!}
So if you like how my chair pockets turned out you can get your free copy HERE.
I have also included a blank sheet of labels for your students names.
For those of you that do a number system I have made a set for you, too!  I couldn't forget you!
I made the set up to 31.
I used MelonHeadz graphics for this ~ the graphics come from her Daily 5 bundle and her Monthly Bookmarks bundle.  She is soooo talented!

CHAIR POUCH LABELS ~ CLICK HERE.
Monday Made-It: #2 ~ Story Stones
The next thing I made were "Story Stones."  After reading Tara's post about them I NEEDED these stones!  I am in love with MelonHeadz graphics!  Her graphics have so much personality that I knew they would be perfect for this idea! 



I printed off the graphics and then I cut them out leaving just a tiny but of white around the edge so they were easy to cut out.  I used Mod Podge to glue the graphics down to the rocks and then did 3 coats of Mod Podge to make sure they were good and durable.  I bought 2 bags of rocks at Michaels but you could always find your own.  I finished them off with a quick spray of Acrylic Sealer to get rid of the tacky feeling Mod Podge leaves behind.  I am going to have the kids pick a stone and then write a story using the picture on the stone as a springboard.  I have created a writing pack to go with the stones.  There are a total of 32 story stones.  In the pack I have included instructions for making the rocks, there are 32 graphics for you to print, I also put the graphics on cards if you like the idea but don't have time to make the stones, and there are 32 writing pages that match the graphics on the stones.  If you would like my "Story Stones ~ A Creative Writing Pack" then click HERE to pop over to my TpT store.  The kids are going to LOVE this!




Monday Made-It: #3 ~ Crate Seats
After seeing everyone's crate seats I had to jump on the bandwagon and make a set for my class!  I just love them and they really were easy to make!  I was so excited when I found purple crates at Staples for $3.98 ~ I hadn't seen them for under $8.00 so this was a bargain!  Home Depot was going to charge me $1.00 per cut to cut the plywood but I went early Saturday evening and he said he would do it for free because it was quiet - thank you!  Directions are everywhere so I won't bore you with how I made them.  I used the instructions from Ginger Snap because they were super easy to follow.  Believe it or not finding the material to cover the seats was the hardest part.  I couldn't find anything!  Finally, I struck gold at Walmart!  They sell fabric pieces already cut and they were the exact size I needed.  Now the pictures make the crates look blue but trust me they are a beautiful bright purple and the fabric is like a tie-dyed look with turquoise splatters all over it.  It's gorgeous!
The pictures don't do them justice!




Monday Made-It: #4 ~ Teacher Door Sign
I made this sign to go on my door.  It was super cheap to make and took no time at all!  I bought the board at Dollar Giant, I printed my personalized MelonHeadz graphic, another graphics from MelonHeadz Monthly Bookmarks bundle, used scrapbook paper that I already had, wooden letters from Michaels (that my daughter painted), and then handy dandy Mod Podge.  I bought a magnetic sheet from the dollar store that I am going to put on the back of it so I can hang on my classroom door.  I was really pleased with how it turned out!


I can't tell you how much it means to me that you stopped by!  I am brand new to blogging and would really love it if you left me a little note ~ it gets lonely when you're new:)
I am off to see everyone else's awesomeness!

Bye for now!
Natalie

24 comments:

  1. Your projects came out great! I love the Home Depot aprons. They're on my growing to do list!

    Brandi
    Success in Second Grade

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    1. Thanks for stopping by! The aprons are a lot cheaper than those you see in catalogues. I was pleased with how they turned out.

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  2. I love all of your projects, especially the story stones. I had seen the idea around Pinterest, but they were painted on pictures and I'm no artist. This idea is great. I can definitely cut out pictures and affix to the rocks. Thanks for the great ideas.
    Lauren
    Thetravelingthirdgradeteacher.blogspot.com

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    1. I am so glad you stopped by! I agree - when I saw the story stones I thought they would be a lot more work - but they weren't. I think the kids will think they're really cool:)

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  3. Awesome projects! Thanks for sharing.

    Kristi
    Learning's a Hoot

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    1. Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving me a comment:)

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  4. You've been busy! Great projects! I love your apron seat covers! I've not heard of story stones before- interesting idea!! Your crate seats look fabulous!

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    1. Thank you so much for your thoughtful words! It made my day and I really appreciate you taking the time to stop by:)

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  5. I am actually on my way to school here soon to put those pockets on my chairs and see how they fit! I love how yours turned out. And your story stones are super cute! I really love all the resources and ideas you have to go with them! Definitely going to check that out!

    Amanda
    Reaching for the TOP!

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  6. I hope the pockets look great! I can't get into my classroom yet so my craft room is getting fuller and fuller with Monday Made-Its! Thank you so much for visiting and I really appreciate your thoughtful words!

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  7. I love all your projects. The story stones are just precious!! I will be adding those to my to do list!! I am your newest follower. Drop by secondgradechatter.blogspot.com. I am new to blogging and just posted my first Monday Made It!! Yay!!!

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    1. I am so excited that you stopped by:) I would love to see your story stones when you make them! I am new to blogging, too! There is sooooo much to learn! I am going to pop by your blog:)

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  8. Love, love, love the story stones! What a creative idea! They look great!

    -Krista
    The Second Grade Superkids

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    1. I think the kids will love the story stones, too! Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to leave me a nice note:)

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  9. Hey Natalie :) We think you are awesome! and the coolest teacher ever! I love the story stones! :p wish i had them when i was in your class!

    Your biggest fans,
    The Fomenkos <3

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    1. Isn't this sooooo cool! I love that you stopped by and left me such a nice note! You're the best:)

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  10. Seeing your story stones makes me wish I was teaching writing this year...maybe I can sneak that into a reading group sometime! Great job!! I'm your newest follower...I'd love it if you stopped by my blog sometime.
    Cheryl
    Spotted Around the School

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    1. Thank you so much for dropping by my little blog! You could use the idea for the story stones but change what you put on them so it works for you! I am going to make holiday stones, too! I am going to pop over to visit you at your blog now:)

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  11. Natalie,

    Everything you make is so precious! I love stopping by your blog. =)


    Heather
    Heather's Heart

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    1. Thank you for your sweet comment:) I have visited your blog many times and am always touched by how much you care about your students. They are very lucky to have you:)

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  12. Love your crafts!!!! Your units rock. Kids loved the persuasive letter writing and were rewarded with a stuffed pet at the end of the unit! Are you going to write any more units for other writing forms? i.e. reports or personal narratives? I would definitely buy them!
    Terri from Barrie :-)

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    1. Hi Terri! I am so glad you found me! I've only been blogging for a couple of weeks - lots to learn! I am so glad to hear that you liked my "I Wanna Iguana" {persuasive writing} unit. My class loved it, too! I like the idea of giving them a stuffed animal at the end - very motivating! I am working on a point of view/diary entries unit using the book "A Weekend With Wendell". It's almost done!

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  13. I love your story stones! They turned out great! I'm your newest follower.

    Christine
    Tales From Rm 17!

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    1. Thank you for stopping by! I am so glad you liked the story stones - I think the kids are going to love them! I am going to make other sets, like, Christmas, Halloween... I am going to pop over to see your blog:)

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